Buyer beware – pre-purchase inspections
Buyer beware is a mantra all property buyers need to heed. At Buyer Solutions we are constantly shocked by buyers failing to do their pre-purchase research and committing huge sums of money to purchases of properties with problems that they are unaware of at the time of purchase.
Case in point last week was a home in Thornbury that had quite significant structural problems. We have several reliable builders that do building inspections for Buyer Solutions clients. Here are some comments on a house that already had a building inspection report from another building inspector who had not highlighted the negative issues.
“Looking through the report, the inspector mentions that the owner should re-point the roof and pressure clean the moss and lichen off the roof tiles but its current condition suggests that this type of repair would be only a short-term fix and the ageing tiles should be replaced with either new terracotta tiles or possibly colourbond roofing.
There is also no mention of the house being noticeably out of alignment even though it’s been restumped in the past.
Definitely no mention about the incorrect ceiling height of the upstairs mezzanine part of the house and no mention of the PVC storm water drainage system not being properly connected out to the street.
It does get frustrating when things are overlooked by either inexperienced or lazy inspectors but there are good and bad in every industry.”
It is also important to note that the buyer had used another Buyers Agent who had been in receipt of incomplete advice in that written and paid for building inspection report.
At Buyer Solutions, our services are not the cheapest in the market, because we take to time to do thorough due diligence on properties targeted for purchase. We aim to fully inform our buyers as to the positives and the negatives of properties, so they can make informed decisions on whether to buy, what to pay and whether there are better property options to pursue.
Our clients are based overseas in this instance and it would have been a nasty surprise to have to re-roof the whole house if they did not know about it. So we did not buy this property and are looking at several other options as we speak.
If you have selected your dream home and want some advice and assistance evaluating the property and negotiating to secure it, you may be interested in Buyer Solutions Assisted Buying Service. One of our team can tell you more. This affordable service often prevents huge mistakes for property buyers in Melbourne and all over Victoria.
For up to date information on what’s happening in real estate in Melbourne, contact Janet at jspencer@buyersolutions.com.au or 0418 101 146.
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